The 1960’s was a decade of great change in the United States. Communities were forced to become involved with the world, as seen by the Vietnam War. Individuals were forced to rethink society, reconceptualizing the beliefs of gender roles and racial equality. When asking someone today about this time period the first thing that comes to mind is hippies. But this description does in fact capture the spirit and politics of this era.

 The youth counterculture of the 1960’s symbolizes the liberal shift of American values. Hippies personify this counterculture with their fundamental beliefs of pacifism, free love, drugs, rock music, and shared property. They firmly believed in peace on Earth and the resolvement of disputes by discussion. Many also promoted freedom of expression by promoting all forms of sexual love, experimenting with drugs, and expressing oneself as seen in rock music.

Technology during this time period was often viewed negatively. It was often portrayed as the tool of the “establishment”, and many people sought a naturistic lifestyle as a means of protest. People often describe hippies as anyone that sports long hair or wears tie-die clothes. Hippies wore long hair and tie-die clothes to promote a non-western perspective and a simpler lifestyle. They had patched, worn-out clothes to emphasize their lack of materialism.  Another reason technology was discouraged was because naturism and nonmaterialism often led to environmentalism. Technology was seen solely as a way to complicate life or destroy the environment.

Technology was further viewed as a tool of the “establishment” because of the Vietnam War. People already protested technology because it was symbolized by the tractors, chain-saws, and pollution that destroyed the environment. Guns, tanks, and planes only added to people’s dismay, showing that technology could also be used to kill and oppress people as well as nature.

The 1960’s counterculture finally accepted technology because it served as a means to promote and enforce free-speech. Anyone can see the dangers inherent in weapons and the pollution of machinery, but noone can deny that expression and communication would be greatly limited without televisions, radios, and telephones. So while many protested technology as a tool of oppression, many realized that technology could also be used as a form of expression.  Hippies had music, anti-war protestors had newspapers/radio, civil rights activists and feminists had television, and everyone else had telephones - all thanks to technology.

David Lightman epitomizes the stereotypical hacker: young, male, a bit nerdy, and socially detached. He plays the role well in that he treats life like a puzzle - starting by taking machines apart, learning what they do, and rearranging them to fit his own bigger picture. Some would define him as an explorer, mapping out his world regardless of legal boundaries and moral consequences. Others would compare him to a mountain climber, doing technological feats simply because he can. But real hackers acknowledge him because he exemplifies the following:

Access to computers should be unlimited and total. David uses inventive ways to employ his knowledge of technology. He bypasses being charged for phone calls, manages anonymity with his personal computer, and walks through company databases like a kid through a park. David doesn't "create" anything in the traditional sense but he does broaden his world, one security system at a time. His methods appear self-serving to the general public but ultimately his actions serve the greater (hacker) good. He maps out his own understanding of computers, but what he finds he finds is shared with other (hacker) confidants.

All information should be free. One of the main reasons computers have evolved is because of the importance of information-sharing. David symbolizes the hacker attitude of free information by his relationship with two fellow hackers. The movie makes it clear that his friends are older and obvious technical experts but it also underlines that they (for the most part) treat him as an equal. David does the same for Jennifer in that he freely answers her questions about his own hacking method. She only skims the surface of how things actually work but her questions are asked more out of wonderment than deliberate questioning interest.

Mistrust authority - promote decentralization. David doesn't really promote decentralization. He deliberately breaks the law by hacking companies and phone lines but he doesn't do so to undermine government authority. For him it's all just part of the fun of hacking itself. In this respect he's a typical teenager. He may not agree with regulation, but he's perfectly content to do his own thing as long as he stays unnoticed. His later fear and escape from the military serve to strengthen his mistrust of authority, but at the same time he does even less to deliberately promote decentralization.

You can create art and beauty on a computer. David uses his computer as a key to unlocking the world. He does literally "create" something new by improving his personal computer. But the real beauty of it all is in what he makes his computer come to represent. To him it becomes more than just a means to an end; it's a way for him to express himself, a way to just be who he is. David's reasons for hacking are similar to those of artists. He'd keep subverting telephone charges or hacking databases even if it never again gave him a physical, tangible reward.

Hackers should be judged by their hacking. The duality of art reflects the two sides to hacking. It can be personal or public, used to make and used to share. David collaborates with two friends who are older and more knowledgeable but they treat him like an equal because he can hack. Ironically this same judging standard is used by the government. He's only a teenager but they formally arrest and detain him as a criminal.

Computers can change your life for the better. David's hacking demonstrates that people can benefit in a number of different ways from technology. First, people can use computers as David initially does, as a direct means of accomplishing tasks. Second, they can use computers to communicate and relate with others, as he does with his relationship to Jennifer. Third, people can use computers as a way to define their lives, as David does whenever he personifies hackers.

An effective analogy to describe technocracy is the example of ants.  Ants alone aren't dangerous.  Even if one does bother you, it doesn't take much effort to stomp it flat.  But ants are everywhere.  Even worse, they can find you anywhere.  When they do, you can be sure that they'll always bring friends.  Single instances of technocracy don't do much damage, but overall they pose a serious problem.  The worse a single ant can do is bite you.  When ants gather they can eat away at things you need.  Metaphorically speaking, most people have a kitchen free of technocracy.  But it would benefit everyone if someone showed us the way to the anthill.